The present disclosure relates generally to shaft seals, and more specifically, to a heavy-duty shaft seal for preventing the loss of fluid and preventing ingress of contaminants around a rotating shaft.
Most vehicles include rotary shafts that are at least partially received in and rotate relative to a stationary housing. Examples of such arrangements are found in conventional transmissions and axle assemblies. It is necessary to provide a seal at the interface between the shaft and the housing. Sealing the interface is necessary because under many operating conditions, especially in dirty or muddy environments, large amounts of contaminants are present that could enter into the interface between the shaft and the housing and cause eventual problems. Conventional sealing arrangements typically include a rubber lip seal to prevent contaminants from entering into the system. Additional rubber lip seals are used to keep lubricant from exiting the system.
There are several problems with conventional rubber lip seals. First, rubber lip seals tend to wear out in an undesirable fashion. The rotary shafts on most heavy duty equipment rotate at very high speeds and the constant contact between the rotating shaft and the rubber lip seal causes the seal to wear. Furthermore, the presence of contaminants along the contact area between the shaft and the rubber lip seal often cause significant wear on the seal, which results in short seal life. This problem is especially pronounced in heavy equipment that operates in muddy environments.
A need exists for a less-expensive longer lasting rotary shaft seal.